quincy allen

Michigan secured a third 2021 commitment last week when 4-star wing Kobe Bufkin made it official. Full analysis, film and projection in the Hello Post. With fellow 4-star wing Isaiah Barnes and 3-star big Will Tschetter also on board, the Wolverines are solid at the wing spot for this cycle and are off to a decent start with bigs. Michigan is turning the heat up for guards and things may move quickly in light of the health crisis precluding visits.

The In-State Option

Top 6? pic.twitter.com/GFtBx2QRwk

— Jaden Akins (@JadenAkins3) July 20, 2020

4-star guard Jaden Akins announced a final 6 yesterday of Michigan, DePaul, Michigan State, Northwestern, Florida and Mississippi State. 

I’ve gone on record multiple times to say that style of play is the appeal for Michigan and Jaden confirmed the same yesterday:

“Michigan – Coach Howard is a good player’s coach. It’s a good system with pro-style sets, that’s interesting to me that he comes from the pros and brings that knowledge and experience.”

While Northwestern is definitely more of a threat than people realize, their pursuit has cooled a bit recently as they’ve ramped up things with 4-star guard Tamar Bates. Florida is relatively new to the party, but might be a school to watch because of that reason. In the end though, I see this as a classic Michigan/Michigan State battle. 

Rivals has been claiming that Akins is a near lock for Michigan State since at least May, but nearly three months have passed without Jaden making a commitment in favor of the Spartans. I’ve countered that by saying the Wolverines are in the hunt based on depth chart and play style. Michigan is absolutely a serious option here folks. 

The initial plan was to take official visits, see the how season plays out for the respective finalists and get a better feel for roster composition accounting for likely NBA departures. But it feels like the health crisis may expedite the process here and a decision might come prior to the Fall. 

Look, MSU is unquestionably in good standing. But there is a clear path to early playing time in Ann Arbor and that is attractive.

[After THE JUMP: the Beilein play, even more guards, Will Tschetter highlights, this week’s edition of not happening.]

Six new offers over the last two weeks seems like good enough reason for a refresh on the recruiting front. Juwan Howard and crew have been extremely active recently and the absence of live evaluation periods has allowed the staff to hone-in on relationship building with top targets.

Not Done in 2020?

I speculated a few weeks back that Michigan would probably love to have top-30 center Efton Reid in the 2020 class and he confirmed as much with Sam Webb:

“I talked about it in the Zoom call with Coach Howard, my mom, Coach Martelli, and the other coaches,” Reid recalled. “Coach Juwan was like, ‘whatever decision you make, we want you in both classes. I could go potentially in ‘20, but I don’t know right now. So, I’m still in the ‘21 class, but they definitely want me for both classes basically.”

In the same piece Reid states new schools are still entering the picture, but Virginia, Louisville, Ohio State and Michigan have been among the programs consistently mentioned over the last month or so.

Efton doesn’t have a timeline for cutting his list, making a commitment or a reclassification decision. The global health crisis complicates the matter since visits are off the table, so a final reclassification decision could drop at any time.

Given the depth issues at the center position, you can count on the Wolverines making a push here. AAU teammates and 2020 signees Terrance Williams and Hunter Dickinson are certainly making a pitch, but I just don’t know how appealing it is for Efton to be in the same class as a multi-year college big in Dickinson.

[After THE JUMP: Offers, Updates, Rankings and More Offers!]

Last week we covered the existing offers in the primer series for 2021 with Guards, Wings and Bigs. Yesterday my Wish List series kicked things off with the Guards. Today, we’ll take a peek at some Wing prospects that I’d like to see the staff pursue moving forward.

As with yesterday’s, the wish list is based on a combination of Michigan’s needs (playmakers off the bounce), Juwan’s preferred physical profile (size and/or good athlete) and my evaluation/projection.

As a refresher, here is my general blueprint for designating wings:

Wing—has adequate size/length to defend the wing; ideally a competent shooter or plus defender; ideally a secondary shot creator that can attack a closeout at minimum

Number One with a Bullet

Eric Van Der Heijden

• Height/Wingspan/Weight: 6’8/NA/200
• High School/AAU: Millbrook HS (NC)/Team Wall (Adidas)
• Current Composite Ranking: 3star/#140 Overall
• My End of Summer Projection: 4star/Top 50-75 Overall

Scouting: good pull-up jumper off the bounce and has the look of a knockdown floor-spacer off the catch. His vision looks superb, he makes timely passes that are accurate and lead to easy buckets. That’s a hard quality to find for a kid with his size. His handle is solid for a bigger wing, as he can change direction with a live dribble with relative ease. He’s an above average athlete with fluid movements. Not explosive, but certainly not sub-par. He projects as a mulit-year college player that has some pro-potential once he adds muscle mass in a high-major strength and conditioning program. 6’8 wings that can shoot off the bounce, make plays for others and put the ball on the floor with plus athleticism don’t grow on trees. Eric would be my #1 target because his size/skillset is compatible with any style of play and any roster combination. He’s versatile and skilled with a ton of upside.

[Hit THE JUMP for this edition of “Who Dats”]